The social media scam conning Australians out of their savings in seconds: ‘I thought it was safe’

Australians looking to make some extra cash selling unwanted or used items online are being urged to watch out for a new scam.

The new PayID impersonation scam is targeting people selling their goods on Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree and other online websites.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Red flags to watch out for when avoiding phone and social media scams.

The scammers respond to online ads, posing as prospective buyers.

After offering to pay using PayID, the scammers trick sellers into transferring cash to activate or upgrade their account.

Amber lost $500 to the scam when she advertised a secondhand bed online.

The scammer seemed like a genuine buyer, she said, and before she knew it she’d lost a chunk of her savings.

“I kept thinking I’ve gone through Commonwealth Bank to set it up, it should be safe,” Amber said.

Australians lost $260,000 to PayID impersonation scams last year, according to Scamwatch.

The scam is targeting Aussies looking to “ramp up side hustles or become more engaged with their finances to deal with rising cost of living pressures,” a NAB spokesperson said.

New research shows 53 per cent of Aussies are holding on to around $1,500 worth of unwanted goods, the NAB spokesperson said, but more than 25 per cent of people are deterred from selling items because of social media hassles.

PayID deception is the latest impersonation scam and the true number of similar schemes impacting the community is expected to be higher given many aren’t reported, NAB Executive Group Executive and Fraud Chris Sheehan said.

“No one wants to try to sell their old couch, fridge, phone or pram and it inadvertently ends up costing them,” Sheehan said. “Unfortunately, that’s what’s happening more and more when people try to sell items online.”

“Just as online marketplaces have replaced garage sales as the go-to option to sell second-hand items, the way we make and receive payments is also changing.”

PayID targeted

Scammers are using PayID as it is new technology many Australians may not yet be familiar with.

“PayID is a relatively new payment method and is quick, safe and simple,” Sheehan said.

“It is also free — and the biggest red flag of any PayID-related scam is often if someone asks you for money to upgrade an account or to access PayID. There are never any charges related to using PayID.

“It is also important to remember PayID will never send you an email, text or message directly. If you receive one of these, it is a scam.

“Cyber criminals are sophisticated and we’re unfortunately now seeing them try to exploit PayID given, on the whole, it isn’t as familiar to the community as other ways to send and receive money.”

Scams are a society-wide issue and underline the need for greater collaboration across government, Business sectors and the community to stop the crime, Sheehan said.

“We will always make every attempt to prevent scams and recover funds where possible, but it can be very difficult to recover them once the funds have left a victim’s account,” he said.

Anyone who thinks they may have fallen victim to a scam is urged to contact their bank immediately.